Catalog Victorian Nursery Tiles How to Order Tile Site Map Search Contact
A baby is God's opinion that life should go on. ~Carl Sandburg
CFA Voysey chose Rook and Holly for his own children's nursery
Rook and Holly is available of 4.25 and 6 inch tiles with original black or cobalt blue birds.
Pricing for Rook and Holly
4.25 inch tils: $48 each
Six-inch tiles: $58 each
Eight-inch tiles: $96 each
Minimum Order: 5 tiles, any combination.
See also:
From top left:
CFA Voysey House, black;
CFA Voysey House, white;
Walter Crane House, cream;
Walter Crane House, aqua
I have two versions of The House that Jack Built, one by CFA Voysey and Walter Crane. That two such well-known designers designed around the nursery rhyme tells us just how enduring was its popularity. Crane's House was designed in 1886. Voysey's design was first manufactured as cotton curtains in 1929 but is believed to predate its manufacture by several years.
The origins of the rhyme that inspired the design is much older, coming from an Aramaic hymn, Chad Gadya (meaning, "One Young Goat") first printed in 1590. The poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge based a self-parody published in 1797 under the name Nehemiah Higginbotham on The House that Jack Built. It also has a dark, political past, having been used many times to lampoon political opponents both in Britian and the United States. Thomas Jefferson used it in an argument against strong federal powers. During the American Civil War, a parody was used to lambast Jefferson David, slavery, and the Confederacy.
I've adapted the CFA Voysey for six-inch tile from the original design House for fabric and wallpaper. Voysey's published wallpaper did not include the charming rat. Walter Crane did do some work on commission for Morris and Co., although his House that Jack Built was created much later. The House on the left above is closer to Voysey's original colors.
Title: The House that Jack Built (CFA Voysey)
Colors: Available on Black and Cream backgrounds
Size: 6 inch and 8 inch tiles
Title: The House that Jack Built (Walter Crane)
Colors: Available on cream in orange and cream, or blue and turquoise colorways
Size: 6 inch square tiles (15.4 cm)
Six-inch tiles: $60 each
Eight-inch tiles: $96 each
Minimum Order: 5 tiles, any combination.
See also:
